This week’s CinemaCon means that leadership from AMC Theatres and other theatrical chains are discussing ticket prices at movie theaters. I feel like I write a variation of this piece maybe once a year. Tickets keep rising and it gets frustrating especially with inflation. Speaking for myself, I haven’t seen a substantial change in income in several years. At least, nothing that enables me to live comfortably. I ended the last year on a spending…
"Movie Theaters, Ticket Prices, and Streaming"Category: Opinion
Aaron Taylor-Johnson is rumored to be the next James Bond so it comes as no surprise that antisemites are threatening to boycott. Lest anyone think that I have been silent, I have been using my Buttondown newsletter to speak out against antisemitism. There is no space for Jew-hatred. It is an awful virus that needs to be removed from this planet. But until we finally rid the world of such hate, I’m going to keep…
"James Bond 007: Antisemites To Boycott Aaron Taylor-Johnson"
Academy Award nominee Cillian Murphy said that Hollywood press junkets are broken as the actor’s own Oppenheimer press tour nears its end. I get where the actor is coming from. It might not even be the filmmaker or talent themselves but the person doing the interview that impacts their own experience. I get his comments about the current model. It is a serious issue, perhaps one in need of reform. When someone is answering the…
"Cillian Murphy Says Hollywood Press Junkets Are Broken"
After the latest Warner Bros. Discovery debacle surrounding Coyote vs. Acme, it’s becoming increasingly clear that David Zaslav should resign. What we’re looking at right now is the last straw of the last straw. We’ve certainly seen too many at this point. It is also completely irresponsible of Zaslav and Warner Bros. Pictures leadership to reject any offers to buy Coyote vs. Acme. Netflix, Amazon and Paramount all have an interest in the film. Hell,…
"David Zaslav Needs to Resign As Warner Bros. Discovery CEO"
Disney’s announcement of the upcoming release of Moana 2 in theaters during Thanksgiving may be shocking but it is not surprising. Why is it shocking? It goes back to the Disney Investor Day in 2020. Moana: The Series was among a number of Disney+ series announced at the time, due for release in 2022. At some point, the studio made the decision to rework the project as a sequel movie. Given how easy it is…
"Moana 2 and Disney’s Focus On Theatrical Over Streaming"
Draconian transphobic laws quickly made their way through the Utah legislature, passing both chambers during the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. I wish I didn’t have to write this. It’s really unfortunate that it has come to writing yet another piece about the transphobic attacks on rights. I guess I could say that I saw it coming a year ago on what was the penultimate day of Sundance. The transphobic laws continued this year with some…
"Sundance 2025: Why I’m Not Attending or Covering Next Year"
The Utah state government’s transphobia was loud and clear when last year’s Sundance Film Festival ended–this year is no different. On the penultimate day of the 2023 Sundance Film Festival, I learned that Utah Governor Spencer Cox signed a bill banning gender-affirming care for transgender youth. It was already bad enough that there was still a hint of transphobia in laws targeting transgender athletes, especially girls. What I found out upon coming back online after…
"Sundance Film Festival: Transphobic Laws In Utah Will Prevent My Attendance"
Dave Chappelle got both transphobic and antisemitic in The Closer in 2021 but the transphobia continues on Netflix with The Dreamer. The Lincoln Theatre in Washington, DC should be ashamed of playing host to transphobia. As should Netflix but we all know that Ted Sarandos is seemingly fine with giving his star comedian a free pass. There is no place for hate speech in comedy. Not now. Not ever. Netflix, enough is enough. Please do…
"Dave Chappelle Gets Transphobic On Netflix in The Dreamer"
Solzy at the Movies has not published a list of worst films since 2020 and do not expect to find such a list going into the future. The reason for not doing so in both 2020 and 2021 is because those years, for the most part, were dumpster fire years. Not so much because of the offerings at movie theater or streaming services but because of the pandemic. But anyway, the way I see it…
"Worst Films of 2023: Why You Won’t Find Them Here"
SNL started the Adam Driver / Olivia Rodrigo episode with a terribly offensive sketch about the campus response to Jew-hatred. I haven’t chimed in earlier because writing about the unfortunate rise in Jew-hatred during the past two months has been emotionally exhausting. Where Pete Davidson said something in the first SNL following the attacks, this past Saturday’s episode took a turn into the offensive territory. It isn’t that comedy is subjective but there are lines…
"SNL: Sketch About Campus Response to Jew-Hatred Is Not Funny"